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This archived content is from Mary Wilkins sewing and
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I have a possible job opportunity, which came about in the weirdest way. My family was visiting D.C.; someone noticed my vanity license plate and correctly assumed that I sew. She put her business card on the windshield, with a note stating that she was looking for new "sewers" for pillow work and other projects. I was very ill at the time and just e-mailed her a couple of days ago. She has responded and now I have to answer a question or two for her, and also ask tons more questions as well. This woman is an interior designer. At any rate, she wants me to tell her what type of work I would be willing to do and a price list/sample.

This is my question--how in the world do I determine what a fair price is for pillow work? I know that these could be fairly simply pillows, but if you had trims, zippers, and such, that's a whole lot more involved.

Distance is probably going to be an issue, which may make this whole thing moot. I also want to work from home and she may want someone to come work in her large workroom (she states that she has that for bedding and large window treatments.)

I will appreciate any comments and advice with this place.

Thanks!

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: MaryW

Date: 02-14-2007, 09:47 AM (2 of 12)

Take a deep breath. You are exactly right not to assume anything. Those pillows may have miles of trim, tassels, pleats and tricky fabric. Don't give her any sort of a price until you have done one or can give yourself a fair assessment. Give her a price for a bare plain pillow.

Take things slow and after speaking with her, you may be able to tell whether you want to proceed.

MaryWowner/editor of Sew Whats New

User: MaryW
Member since: 06-23-2005
Total posts: 2542

From: paroper

Date: 02-14-2007, 01:33 PM (3 of 12)

Take this one easy...sometimes it is a scam...they take your work and say it doesn't measure up to their standards so they don't pay..in the meantime, they sell it for a nice profit. They are rather reaching here because they don't know the quality of the work of someone on the street. I would expect anyone legit to advertise in a local paper, maybe not. Just be careful with this one and if your gut says "no", don't do it...just remember, you could do it for yourself and make full profit.

Mary, you were right--this lady wants odd shaped pillows with layered trims, bolster pillows, and she says she always wants a working zipper. She also wants to know if I will be willing to do odd shaped items; her example was a window cushion if she supplied the cushion. She does want to see samples of my work, but most of my work is garment sewing, not home dec. I am not that good at home dec yet and when she said she might want pillows sewn, I had visions of rather simple pillows with simple shapes. Apparently, she designs her own and I'm not sure my skills are up to her level, especially since I mostly do garment sewing .

I would love to make some extra money, but I don't think this one is going to work. I'm going to sleep on it before I send her a response.

Thanks again for your advice!

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: paroper

Date: 02-14-2007, 06:21 PM (5 of 12)

You might also want to make sure that she sews. Sometimes people who don't sew don't understand limitations and special applications. It would be much easier if she did. If they are odd shaped, you might also want to find out how she plans to stuff them.

Pam,
I am guessing that this woman doesn't sew at all. In situations like this, I'm always tempted to offer to teach the person how to sew (I taught beginning sewing for a while) just so that they can see for themselves what goes into one "simple" project.

From the tone of this woman's e-mail, it sounds like she might be one of those people who thinks that just because you sew means you can make anything. Some of my former clients would be approached with making large home dec items or even specialized garments--just as they were learning to sew themselves!

I'm still going to sleep on it, but I think I might need to avoid getting involved. As you said, Pam, I could make/design my own items and make full profit. I was looking at this as a possible way to make some extra money, but I'm not sure the possible aggravation will be worth it. I've done volunteer sewing jobs that were supposed to be "simple" but were always more involved than what I had bargained for at the time.

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: paroper

Date: 02-14-2007, 08:07 PM (7 of 12)

Well, my view on people who don't do some of the sewing is that they dream, you do the work, they pay you next to nothing, take a big mark up and get the credit, praise and money...but that's just my experience. If you are really interested in this type of thing I strongly suggest that you do your own. Pillows, nothing pillows sell for huge bucks. You may be able to find a small boutique that sells home dec or a specialty home shop some place and make a killing using your own talents and getting paid more what you are worth!! They used to sell very simple pillows at the craft shop where I had a booth for $35 a piece and they were just pre-printed pillows..couldn't keep them in the store, sold like hot cakes.

Pam, as usual you have some good advice! After reading your posts last night, I had already made the decision to decline this woman's "offer" of sorts. If I were doing it for myself and I messed up, that would be one thing, but there is a lot of pressure when sewing for other folks. Even when I did a lot of volunteer sewing, I found that "simple" projects always turned into more involved projects and people were picky.

I've also seen pillows--like the ones you describe--sell for quite a bit on ebay. I've toyed with the idea of sewing placemats, matching napkins, and possibly napkin rings and trying to sell those on ebay. One of my friends there said she thought they would sell well. What do you think? I've done a bit of research and they do seem to sell--and many of the sets are plain; the fabric is the design. (I'll also check into some speciality shops near me to see what they sell and if perhaps something could be worked out with them. That's a really good idea!)

Thanks for your advice and encouragement. I'm going to e-mail this woman and tell her that my skills probably aren't quite up to her level/expectations. That may not be entirely true, but I think she'll understand it...and hopefully take no for an answer.

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: toadusew

Date: 02-15-2007, 08:16 AM (9 of 12)

Regarding my skill levels--I meant to say that I understand the concepts of a lot of techniques, but have never really worked with them, so I don't feel that I've mastered them yet. With some time to play and experiment, I'm sure I could manage the sewing techniques, but as I've said, doing it for someone else who would probably be very picky would make me very nervous!

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: paroper

Date: 02-15-2007, 09:56 AM (10 of 12)

When it comes to home dec, you need more logic than skill. It is a matter of picturing what you want to accomplish and figuring out how it should go together...once you understand that, you are on your way. There is a lot of money to be made in simple home dec products. A lot of people will change out accessories because they can't afford to buy furniture...and it is cheaper. Ebay can be a good place to market, or at least I've know a lot of people who have done well there. You need to be sure that you stay away from copywritten designs (fabric) after that, you should be good to go.

I had a friend who made herself a long scarf (dressy) a few years ago. People liked it, she wore it into a shop and they LOVED it...she ended up marketing her scarves in a major local garment chain all over the area. She made some pretty nice change...the trick is to find the market.

As for which things to make? Pillows are a great place to start...I'd check e-bay and see what people are bidding on. You want your item to be original. the problem with selling on e-bay is that if you get a good idea it will be copied (for sure), but it is a great place to turn your items over.

When speaking with a friend about this business opportunity, she reminded me that I do have the skills this lady was looking for, but I don't have the technique practice to have mastered them. And for me, the stress of trying to please someone else would take the fun out of the sewing projects. At any rate, I e-mailed the woman and told her that I would not be able to pursue the matter further. She didn't bother to reply, and while I didn't really expect a reply, I think it would have been a nice touch. I'm certain I made the right decision.

Pam, I have been doing a little research on ebay and I've been amazed that some very plain pillows are actually selling! I do have a question, though...I notice that many folks sell pillows or pillowcases with the licensed fabric--Dora the Explorer, Sesame Street, etc...is this copyright infringement?

Some of the pillows that have sold were just plain square pillows made out of holiday fabric or fabric panels/"pictures" or just prety fabric in general. They went from about $6 per pillow, all the way up to $15 or more per pillow.

User: toadusew
Member since: 01-08-2005
Total posts: 369

From: paroper

Date: 02-18-2007, 12:18 PM (12 of 12)

Yes it is copywrite infringement and it isn't a place you want to go...check the selvages of your fabrics and you'll know which ones are "ok".

I would tend to (probably) make 3-4 pillows of a kind and list each one separately or maybe one alone and one as a pair. Many people buy matched or coordinated pillows and they can be very basic. Learn to add simple piping to the edges and little touches that make them interesting. Make your own piping to save money...cord is VERY cheap. If you buy it durning Hancock's 1/2 price notions sale, you can get it for a song. You don't want to have a huge investment in your pillow but you want to attract customers. Cording that has a gathered cover can be beautiful (I usually buy about 1 1/8 in cording for this and cut the cover on the straight of grain) and Chintz is lovely when it is gathered on the cord. When it comes to pillows, people will buy and they can be very simple.